Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates to products made or derived from tobacco, or that otherwise incorporate tobacco, and are intended for human consumption. In this regard, aspects of the present disclosure relate to flue-curing of tobacco, and, more particularly, to apparatuses and associated methods for flue-curing research quantities of tobacco leaves.
Description of Related Art
In the production of tobacco products, the tobacco may be cured. Curing refers to preparation of the tobacco for consumption. Curing degrades and oxidizes carotenoids in tobacco leaves, producing a consumable item with desirable taste attributes. In this regard, starch in the tobacco leaves may be converted to sugar as the leaves are cured.
Methods for curing tobacco include air-curing, fire-curing, flue-curing, and sun-curing. By way of example, flue-curing may be used to produce tobacco for cigarettes. Flue curing may involve hanging leaves in a barn or box defining a chamber in which a heat supply such as a radiator provides heat to the air in the chamber.
However, the conditions under which tobacco leaves are cured may affect the quality of the resulting tobacco product. Accordingly, improvements with respect to curing apparatuses and methods may be desirable.